Vincenzo Nibali’s attacking instincts come to the fore in Giro d’Italia

BAGNO DI ROMAGNA ITALY MAY 20 Vincenzo Nibali of Italy and Team Trek Segafredo during the 104th Giro dItalia 2021 Stage 13 a 212km stage from Siena to Bagno di Romagna girodiitalia Giro UCIworldtour on May 20 2021 in Bagno di Romagna Italy Photo by Tim de WaeleGetty Images
Vincenzo Nibali (Trek-Segafredo) on the attack during stage 12 of the Giro d'Italia (Image credit: Getty Images Sport)

In the end Vincenzo Nibali (Trek-Segafredo) only managed to take back a slender seven seconds on the group of favourites that includes Giro d’Italia leader Egan Bernal (Ineos Grenadiers) but the sight of the veteran rider and his young apprentice Giulio Ciccone attacking on the final climb of stage 12 will have given the Trek-Segafredo squad a welcome morale boost after a bruising encounter the day before.

While Andrea Vendrame (AG2R Citroën Team) was up the road winning the stage from Siena to Bagno di Romagna from a breakaway, it looked as though the overall contenders were content to keep their powder dry for another day. Step forward Ciccone, who attacked from the maglia rosa group on the final climb of the stage. Nibali was quickly on the attack too and the duo linked up and forced Ineos Grenadiers to burn through their domestiques before the Trek pair were finally caught prior the summit.

Daniel Benson

Daniel Benson was the Editor in Chief at Cyclingnews.com between 2008 and 2022. Based in the UK, he joined the Cyclingnews team in 2008 as the site's first UK-based Managing Editor. In that time, he reported on over a dozen editions of the Tour de France, several World Championships, the Tour Down Under, Spring Classics, and the London 2012 Olympic Games. With the help of the excellent editorial team, he ran the coverage on Cyclingnews and has interviewed leading figures in the sport including UCI Presidents and Tour de France winners.